Grace Lee Whitney

Grace Lee Whitney (April 1, 1930 – May 1, 2015) was an American actress and singer. She was known for her role as Janice Rand on the original Star Trek television series and subsequent Star Trek television series and films, as well as for her appearances at Star Trek events.

Early life

Whitney was born Mary Ann Chase in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and was adopted by the Whitney family, who changed her name to Grace Elaine. She started her entertainment career as a "girl singer" on Detroit's WJR radio at the age of fourteen. After she left home, she began to call herself Lee Whitney, eventually becoming known as Grace Lee Whitney. In her late teens, she moved to Chicago and where she opened in nightclubs for Billie Holiday and Buddy Rich, and toured with the Spike Jones and Fred Waring Bands.

Star Trek

Star Trek television show

Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry cast Whitney in the role of Yeoman Janice Rand, the personal assistant to Captain James T. Kirk, in 1966. Whitney said: "I was on diet pills trying to stay thin — and I was very thin. They wanted you to fit into the uniforms and I couldn't quite so I went on amphetamines." Whitney appeared in eight of the first thirteen episodes, after which she was released from contract. She had claimed that, while still under contract, she was sexually assaulted by an executive associated with the series. Later, in a public interview, she stated that Leonard Nimoy had been her main source of support during that time. She went into more details about the assault in her book The Longest Trek, but refused to name the executive, saying in the book, "This is my story, not his."

Grace Lee

Grace Lee (Korean: 이경희; born Lee Kyŏng Hee) (born October 4, 1982) is a Korean television host and radio disc jockey working in the Philippines. She is the third Korean expatriate to appear prominently in Philippine television, after Sandara Park, Ryan Bang. She can speak Tagalog and English in addition to her native Korean.

Biography

Early life

Lee was born and raised in Seoul, but moved to the Philippines at the age of 10 because of her father's business, which involved importing Korean cars. She studied from second grade to fourth year high school at St. Paul College in Pasig City and graduated from Ateneo de Manila University, where she obtained her Communication Arts degree. Before becoming a TV host, she has been hosting events for Korean-Filipino communities as well as being an official interpreter for Malacañang.

Career

Lee planned on becoming a journalist. She sent her résumé to major television studios in the Philippines and received a callback from GMA Network. She landed her first Philippine TV hosting job in March 2007 as a segment host on Q Network’s lifestyle-magazine show "The Sweet Life". Among her first assignments include featuring life in Korea where she gets to wear traditional female garb as well as interviewing prominent Korean celebrities such as Yoon Se Ah of Lovers in Prague and King Sejong the Great drama series.

Grace Lee (disambiguation)

Grace Lee is a Korean lifestyle host in the Philippines.

Grace Lee is also the name of:

Grace Lee (director)

Grace Lee is an American director and producer. She is known for both her documentaries and narrative films, which often mix in elements of documentaries.

Biography

Lee is of Korean heritage and from Columbia, Missouri. She originally wanted to be a journalist, but after interviewing sex workers in South Korea, she realized that she could better tell stories through film. Back in the United States, she enrolled in UCLA. She now lives in Los Angeles, California.

Career